Episode 113
Google's New NotebookLM - Creating a 2 person AI podcast from your docs!
There seems to be quite a lot of buzz about Google’s new AI tool, NotebookLM and how it can potentially impact the world of podcasting.
As a podcast producer and founder of podcast production agency, Bamby Media, I’m always testing new tools to see how they can benefit (or hinder) the industry I love so much.
Armed with a healthy dose of hope and scepticism, I decided to give Google NotebookLM a whirl to see whether the podcasting world should be worried.
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Transcript
There is a new AI tool in
Speaker:town and I'm going to walk you
Speaker:through it a little bit today.
Speaker:You're going to get my first
Speaker:take, my first review of
Speaker:the Google Notebook LM tool.
Speaker:This is essentially, if we look
Speaker:at what Google says it is, it's a
Speaker:personalized AI collaborator that
Speaker:helps you do your best thinking.
Speaker:So apparently you can
Speaker:upload your documents and then
Speaker:Notebook LM will become an expert
Speaker:in those documents and then help
Speaker:you, uh, just digest it easier.
Speaker:So let's say you're trying to review a
Speaker:thesis or some sort of, you know, fairly
Speaker:long document or analyze something.
Speaker:the idea is for you to be able to feed
Speaker:it into this and then get something
Speaker:pretty good out of it that you can
Speaker:then use in a more productive way.
Speaker:Now, the thing that people are
Speaker:going nuts about for this notebook
Speaker:LM is that you can feed it in a
Speaker:document and then it creates a
Speaker:two person conversational style.
Speaker:Podcast episode out of the
Speaker:information that you've given it.
Speaker:And so I thought this is something that I
Speaker:definitely need to have a look at because
Speaker:it is podcast adjacent and yeah, I
Speaker:basically wanted to see whether I should
Speaker:be worried about the world of podcasting.
Speaker:so what you're going to hear is my
Speaker:first reaction to this new piece of
Speaker:AI, because I've never used it before.
Speaker:if you want to see my full reaction,
Speaker:it's over on YouTube and there is a bit
Speaker:of a walkthrough as to how you actually
Speaker:get it set up and started from there.
Speaker:But yeah, just so you know, as well, once
Speaker:you feed the document in, and then you
Speaker:hit generate audio, it doesn't give you
Speaker:any options to change who the speakers
Speaker:are, you can't use your own voice.
Speaker:It just does it automatically
Speaker:with the two voices.
Speaker:I'm not sure whether they're the same
Speaker:voices that everyone hears when they
Speaker:put in their documents as well because
Speaker:I haven't looked at any other reviews.
Speaker:I didn't want to be swayed in any
Speaker:way by anyone else's information.
Speaker:So I just did it myself.
Speaker:So yeah, I'm not really sure what
Speaker:the other experiences are for other
Speaker:people, but this is my experience.
Speaker:So we're going to jump into what you
Speaker:hear from me actually testing it out.
Speaker:And you can hear a little bit of
Speaker:the AI and how it came together.
Speaker:And then after the fact, you'll hear my
Speaker:first takes, I suppose, on the software.
Speaker:And I would love to hear what
Speaker:you thought of the AI as well.
Speaker:Did you feel like it was believable?
Speaker:Would it be something that
Speaker:you would actually listen to?
Speaker:Would you get bored with it easily?
Speaker:You know, I love your feedback.
Speaker:It'd be really cool to
Speaker:get your feedback on it.
Speaker:And I believe you can actually
Speaker:leave comments now on Spotify.
Speaker:So if you are happening to
Speaker:listen to this on Spotify, you
Speaker:can leave me a comment there.
Speaker:Okay.
Speaker:Let's get stuck into it and let's
Speaker:see whether the AI will be taking
Speaker:over the world anytime soon.
Speaker:I'm going to use my podcast launch
Speaker:strategy article because that was a 30
Speaker:minute ish, full deep dive YouTube video,
Speaker:as well as an article that we wrote,
Speaker:which had like step by step information.
Speaker:It took three minutes
Speaker:for it to generate this.
Speaker:I'm scared to press play because I
Speaker:don't know what it's gonna sound like,
Speaker:but let's, uh, let's give it a crack.
Speaker:All right.
Speaker:So you're ready to get that awesome
Speaker:podcast idea of yours out there.
Speaker:Time to hit record and launch, right?
Speaker:Well, hold on just a sec.
Speaker:Today's deep dive is all about making
Speaker:that launch legendary and get this.
Speaker:We're doing it without
Speaker:blowing your budget on ads.
Speaker:We're going through 97
Speaker:podcast launch strategy
Speaker:by Bambi Media.
Speaker:Yep, Bambi Media.
Speaker:And let me tell you, they've got
Speaker:some seriously smart stuff in here.
Speaker:It's not just about
Speaker:hitting publish, you know.
Speaker:This guide's all about strategy.
Speaker:Oh, absolutely.
Speaker:Think about it like
Speaker:planning a surprise party.
Speaker:You wouldn't just spring it on
Speaker:your friend out of nowhere, right?
Speaker:No way,
Speaker:where's the fun in that?
Speaker:Exactly.
Speaker:You build up the anticipation, get
Speaker:everyone excited for the big reveal.
Speaker:Oh my god.
Speaker:That's where this whole pre
Speaker:launch hype machine comes in.
Speaker:Okay, so we're talking like
Speaker:three weeks before launch.
Speaker:Three weeks out, yeah.
Speaker:And you might be thinking, time
Speaker:to shout it from the rooftops.
Speaker:But Bambi Media, they
Speaker:suggest a different approach.
Speaker:Ooh, I'm intrigued.
Speaker:What are they looking at?
Speaker:Holding back a bit.
Speaker:At least at first, instead of just
Speaker:dropping the podcast name right away,
Speaker:they suggest kind of teasing it out.
Speaker:Teasing it out, I like it.
Speaker:Right, like, imagine posting Oh wait,
Speaker:let me just I don't know some cryptic
Speaker:graph What the actual hell is this?
Speaker:Wow.
Speaker:Okay.
Speaker:So I'm just trying to
Speaker:get my head around this.
Speaker:So we've got two people, the fact that
Speaker:they were like the interplay between
Speaker:the two of them, where she's saying
Speaker:something, he's saying something.
Speaker:And he almost like he jumps in as well.
Speaker:Like that's actually what
Speaker:happens in real conversation.
Speaker:The audio quality is of course on point.
Speaker:Like it just sounds like they're right
Speaker:here in a studio with you because
Speaker:they're not actually in a studio.
Speaker:They don't actually exist.
Speaker:Wow.
Speaker:Okay.
Speaker:Let me just keep going.
Speaker:I don't know, some cryptic
Speaker:graphics on your LinkedIn or X.
Speaker:You can definitely hear some
Speaker:of that robotic, like, digital,
Speaker:though, in the actual audio.
Speaker:It doesn't sound proper, but if this
Speaker:was something that I didn't realize
Speaker:was AI, I don't know whether I would
Speaker:realize that it is AI, you know?
Speaker:Let's keep going.
Speaker:Hints at the theme, but
Speaker:doesn't give it all away.
Speaker:Oh, I love that.
Speaker:It's like a visual puzzle.
Speaker:Gets people guessing,
Speaker:sparking those conversations.
Speaker:Oh my god, even did a like,
Speaker:wrong, like little stutter there.
Speaker:Gets boop people.
Speaker:Gets people guessing.
Speaker:Like, that's what a normal human,
Speaker:oh my god, you guys, I don't know,
Speaker:I don't know how to respond to this.
Speaker:My brain can't handle it.
Speaker:Wait, let's keep
Speaker:going.
Speaker:You got it.
Speaker:It's all about that curiosity,
Speaker:that fear of missing out.
Speaker:Suddenly, you're not just passively
Speaker:scrolling, you're invested.
Speaker:Okay, so we're building
Speaker:that pre launch buzz.
Speaker:Mm
Speaker:hmm.
Speaker:And then
Speaker:Well, this is where Bambi Media
Speaker:gets even more interesting.
Speaker:They're all about taking your
Speaker:audience behind the scenes.
Speaker:Give them a sneak peek.
Speaker:Ooh, I like that.
Speaker:Like a little VIP access?
Speaker:Exactly.
Speaker:Share little snippets
Speaker:from recording sessions.
Speaker:A
Speaker:funny blooper reel, maybe.
Speaker:Yeah, or even like a
Speaker:time lapse of your Ugh.
Speaker:I tell you what, it makes me sound
Speaker:like, makes Bambi Media sound like we
Speaker:really know what we're talking about.
Speaker:The fact that we have two people talking
Speaker:about the strategies that we have, it,
Speaker:oh yeah, like wow, we're so famous right
Speaker:now, like we're celebrities because
Speaker:they are talking about our strategies.
Speaker:One thing I will say is that
Speaker:the title of the article is
Speaker:97 Podcast Launch Strategy.
Speaker:And they said that at the beginning,
Speaker:let's just number 97, like episode 97.
Speaker:So if I was doing this for
Speaker:realsies, I obviously wouldn't
Speaker:have that bit in the front.
Speaker:I would make it that the title was
Speaker:something that made more sense when they
Speaker:led into it, like leading them into it.
Speaker:Okay, let's listen to a little bit more.
Speaker:Podcasts are coming together.
Speaker:It shows the human side
Speaker:of it all, you know.
Speaker:It's huge.
Speaker:People connect with stories
Speaker:with that authenticity.
Speaker:It makes them feel like they're part
Speaker:of the journey from the very beginning.
Speaker:And that feeling that they're
Speaker:in the loop, it's powerful.
Speaker:It builds community loyalty before
Speaker:your first episode even drops.
Speaker:So smart.
Speaker:You guys, this is really good.
Speaker:Now I'm listening to it from
Speaker:a perspective of like, I'm
Speaker:not retaining, I'm not taking
Speaker:in all the information here.
Speaker:I'm just listening to it
Speaker:from a, how did they do?
Speaker:They are skipping bits that are
Speaker:in the article, uh, at this point.
Speaker:So there's, there's not as much
Speaker:detail as the article gives.
Speaker:And there's also not as much detail
Speaker:as the whole YouTube like step by step
Speaker:guide that I did, where it was like,
Speaker:You know, me in front of a whiteboard
Speaker:going, okay, this is step one, like
Speaker:do, you know, really detailed stuff.
Speaker:They've condensed this down to
Speaker:nine minutes and 21 seconds.
Speaker:So it's not probably going to hit
Speaker:everything, but I mean, I could,
Speaker:I could imagine how this could be
Speaker:useful, especially if you have.
Speaker:Documents that you want to share maybe
Speaker:internally with your team, like if
Speaker:you've got like a internal podcast
Speaker:or you've got like a membership or
Speaker:you've got a masterclass that you
Speaker:want to repurpose into something and
Speaker:you've got an article for it, you've
Speaker:got like docs that are really heavy
Speaker:on information or maybe you've got
Speaker:research notes that you're, you know,
Speaker:you've been putting together some sort
Speaker:of research that is quite detailed and
Speaker:then you upload all this and the AI
Speaker:like condenses it down into something.
Speaker:That people could actually listen to and
Speaker:get the cliff notes of that's probably
Speaker:what I like how I'm interpreting it From
Speaker:my first listen through it could be a
Speaker:companion piece though to the full on
Speaker:article The only thing i'd worry about
Speaker:is yeah Like how accurate is it and what
Speaker:information is it leaving out and is
Speaker:that stuff that shouldn't be left out?
Speaker:There's you know more that i'd have
Speaker:to look at here, but the actual audio
Speaker:quality itself like Thank you If we just
Speaker:listen to the dude, the man voice, um,
Speaker:just the depth of tone, like the, the big
Speaker:meatiness in the base, in the base there.
Speaker:So we're talking high quality
Speaker:visuals, something that truly
Speaker:captures the essence of the podcast.
Speaker:Yeah, so I think that it's
Speaker:doing a better job of the male
Speaker:voice than the female voice.
Speaker:The female voices.
Speaker:It's still, it's got inflections,
Speaker:it's those higher sort of
Speaker:frequencies, it's got a little
Speaker:bit more of that digital sound.
Speaker:Maybe it could probably
Speaker:still fool people.
Speaker:Maybe that it doesn't really matter
Speaker:because it's something that you're
Speaker:just trying to condense down, make an
Speaker:article or something that's big into
Speaker:something smaller and more tolerable.
Speaker:So this is pretty bonkers.
Speaker:This is hard for me to admit
Speaker:because I am a podcast producer.
Speaker:I am a podcast producer, okay?
Speaker:I produce a lot of podcasts all the time.
Speaker:And This has done a really good job
Speaker:without anything, without anybody.
Speaker:It's not you though.
Speaker:If the point is to build your
Speaker:personal brand, it's not your voice.
Speaker:You're not one of the hosts.
Speaker:That would be interesting if they
Speaker:could take your voice and then have
Speaker:you be one of the hosts and have you
Speaker:positioned as the one with the authority.
Speaker:That would blow even more of my mind.
Speaker:Uh, it's probably still a while off.
Speaker:Maybe not.
Speaker:I don't know.
Speaker:Maybe it's closer than we think.
Speaker:Oh God.
Speaker:That could be interesting because it
Speaker:would save you potentially actually
Speaker:having conversations with anybody real.
Speaker:But do you want that?
Speaker:Like, in the same way, do you want that?
Speaker:Do you want to have
Speaker:not real conversations?
Speaker:What is that doing to
Speaker:podcasting as a whole?
Speaker:Isn't that the point of podcasting?
Speaker:Like if I really think about that,
Speaker:the point of podcasting, not for
Speaker:every genre, but certainly for the
Speaker:ones that I feel, uh, the ones I
Speaker:connect with the most, it's about
Speaker:having real conversations with people.
Speaker:You get their true feelings
Speaker:about something, or you're
Speaker:trying to dig into something.
Speaker:Look at shows like Joe Rogan and
Speaker:Diary of a CEO and Modern Wisdom.
Speaker:They're real conversations with
Speaker:very interesting people that
Speaker:go deeper than surface level.
Speaker:And you feel really connected to them.
Speaker:I don't see how you could replace that.
Speaker:I don't see how you could
Speaker:replace building a personal
Speaker:brand via this method.
Speaker:I don't think that's where the,
Speaker:the, like the kicker is for this.
Speaker:I think that this would be super
Speaker:useful from a podcasting perspective.
Speaker:Let's say you wanted to have, like, you
Speaker:wrote an article daily, like daily news,
Speaker:you know, and you wanted that to be
Speaker:something that was shared almost like a
Speaker:radio breakfast show or something where
Speaker:you've gone and found the news that you
Speaker:want to make sure people know about.
Speaker:And then you don't want to be the host.
Speaker:You just want two
Speaker:people to talk about it.
Speaker:You want to be the one that's researched
Speaker:it and found all those, that stuff.
Speaker:You put it up and then you have
Speaker:these two people talk about it.
Speaker:That would be actually
Speaker:a fine way to do that.
Speaker:You could have this as a branded
Speaker:internal show where you're distilling
Speaker:that information to, People in your
Speaker:team, people in other teams, you're
Speaker:talking about updates, anything,
Speaker:you could really do it like that.
Speaker:If you're wanting to have two people
Speaker:in there to make it more engaging,
Speaker:then that's the way to do it.
Speaker:I have seen AI try before where it's, you
Speaker:know, you can feed in some information
Speaker:and then it creates a podcast episode.
Speaker:And that's always been solo.
Speaker:And, uh, And that's been really bad.
Speaker:The AI has been not engaging
Speaker:because there's no inflection.
Speaker:There's no like intonation.
Speaker:There's no, like the breaths are weird,
Speaker:just doesn't work, but it does work
Speaker:in this context for this AI model.
Speaker:I could listen to this and not be bored.
Speaker:That's really interesting to me.
Speaker:Would you fool people?
Speaker:Would you tell people?
Speaker:We'll say, hey, by the way, this is AI.
Speaker:I mean, I guess you have to.
Speaker:That's probably part of the legal
Speaker:framework around the whole thing.
Speaker:Like, FYI, these aren't real
Speaker:people, but it's my real research.
Speaker:Like, it's my real notes.
Speaker:Just thinking about other use cases,
Speaker:like you could maybe even, let's say
Speaker:you get an article or a bit of research
Speaker:that you're trying to distill, and
Speaker:it's not yours, it's somebody else's.
Speaker:You want to try and understand it more.
Speaker:You could feed it into this and
Speaker:then listen to it to maybe you
Speaker:learn better like that listening to
Speaker:other people talk about it again.
Speaker:I don't know how accurate
Speaker:it is like all these things.
Speaker:I don't know whether it would miss
Speaker:too much of the key facts, but that
Speaker:would be worth trialing to perhaps.
Speaker:I don't know.
Speaker:I'd love to know what you guys think.
Speaker:What?
Speaker:What possible use cases could
Speaker:you see for this notebook?
Speaker:L.
Speaker:M.
Speaker:Like, is there somewhere that you
Speaker:would really actually use this?
Speaker:What's the use case?
Speaker:It has blown my mind.
Speaker:It's actually baffling to me that we're
Speaker:now here in such a short space of time.
Speaker:Like it's only been, I don't know,
Speaker:a year or so since everything
Speaker:really took off in the AI space.
Speaker:So yeah, should I be worried guys?
Speaker:Should I be worried
Speaker:as a podcast producer?
Speaker:Should I be worried?
Speaker:Am I just, you know, are we
Speaker:going to become obsolete soon?
Speaker:You don't even need us to
Speaker:produce your beautiful podcasts.
Speaker:You're just going to send it all to
Speaker:the robots and then be done with it.
Speaker:What do you think?
Speaker:Weigh in, let me know.
Speaker:Have a good day.
